Bulgaria Requests from Serbia Information on Water Quality in Dragovistica River

Bulgaria Requests from Serbia Information on Water Quality in Dragovistica River

Sofia, December 7 (BTA)- Bulgaria has used diplomatic channels to request information from Serbia on the water quality in the Dragovistica River and about the extracting operations which can be potentially polluting to the river, the Environment Ministry said on Friday.

Bulgaria's Foreign Ministry sent a diplomatic note in late November. In addition the Environment Ministry has sent a letter to the Serbian Ministry of Environmental Protection to request information under the Convention for Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context about an investment which will be implemented in the village of Karamanica, Bosilegrad region. A pilot facility will test the flotation processing of copper, lead and zinc ores.

So far Serbia has not provided information under the Convention despite a formal request by Bulgaria in 2016.

The Dragovistica River, which runs through southeastern Serbia and western Bulgaria, has been included in a monitoring programme in the West Aegean Sea Basin and every month the Executive Environment Agency collects samples to test the waters for the presence of cadmium, lead, nickel, calcium, magnesium and free cyanide and every three months it tests the physical and chemical features. RY/PP //